CALGARY — Canadian Pacific and potash export firm Canpotex have announced a new seven-year contract between the two firms, a successor to a current 10-year agreement that expires in 2022. The new agreement runs through 2028. “We are pleased to have entered into this agreement and incredibly proud to continue our successful relationship with Canpotex,” […]
CHICAGO — BNSF Railway has agreed to reimburse the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for part of the costs of the cleanup at the site of a metal foundry in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood. The Chicago Sun-Times reports H. Kramer & Co., which operates the brass and bronze foundry; BNSF; and the City of Chicago will share […]
At the onset of the pandemic in 2020, Class I railroads furloughed train crews as volume sank at its fastest rate ever. When volume rebounded, crew members were not called back to work at the same rate as traffic returned because railroads were moving their tonnage on fewer but longer trains. Then three things happened […]
Few years pass without railroads facing disruptions from natural disasters. This year was no different, with events including flooding that caused a Union Pacific derailment in Utah in July, Hurricane Ida hitting rail operations from New Orleans to New England in August; and devastating tornadoes in December, including one that derailed a CSX train. But […]
Amtrak cited the COVID-19 pandemic as justification in October 2020 when it cut most long-distance train frequencies to triweekly, furloughed employees, and began sidelining cars and locomotives. But in 2021, as the market began signaling the services it sought — with business and commuter travel languishing while shorter consists on national-network trains continued to sell out. […]
Surface Transportation Board Chairman Martin J. Oberman ended 2021 the way he began it: By criticizing Wall Street’s influence on the publicly traded Class I railroads. Oberman addressed several shipper and rail industry conferences during the year and sharpened his message each time he spoke. Wall Street’s demands for lower operating ratios have prompted railroads […]
LONDON — Activist investor TCI Fund Management has asked Canadian National to delay the selection of its next chief executive until after the special shareholder meeting in March. CN on Monday said it would name a new CEO in January, when CEO JJ Ruest is scheduled to retire. TCI’s request for a pause in the […]
What has been railroading’s top story in 2021? Today, we begin the process of answering that question, as determined in balloting by the Trains editorial staff, Classic Trains editor Brian Schmidt (who spent most of the year on our staff), and key News Wire contributors. Balloting concluded on Dec. 10. We’ll be recapping stories each […]
HOUSTON — Union Pacific will continue work on upgrading Englewood Yard in Houston in early 2022, with two projects in January and February. The railroad informed customers it will install a new signal system throughout the yard Jan. 9-13. While UP says it will have additional staff on hand to mitigate delays, it says some […]
WASHINGTON — Carload traffic remains up while intermodal moves continue to lag behind 2020 levels in the latest weekly statistics from the Association of American Railroads. For the week ending Dec. 18, 2021, U.S. railroads moved 234,704 carloads, an increase of 1.7% over the same week in 2020, while the 269,395 containers and trailers represented […]
HARTFORD, Conn. — Funding for new locomotives and two new stations is included in $839 million in transportation projects approved Tuesday by Connecticut’s State Bond Commission, the Hartford Courant reports. The commission unanimously approved the set of 58 transportation projects. Included are $280 million for new dual-power locomotives to replace aging diesels used on some […]
BOVINA, Miss. — Seventeen cars of a Kansas City Southern train derailed Tuesday evening in Bovina, disrupting traffic and leading to concerns about hazardous materials in some of the cars. The derailment blocked Bovina Drive, which could be impassable for an extended period, and knocked out a power line and transformer. No injuries were reported. […]
